Nocturnal Fire
by WeWoreTheAetheriumforKatria
Summary: When a wood elf is kidnapped by soldiers what will she do to repair the damage to her heart and mind. - A/N- sorry really really bad description. I'll change it when I think of something better.


**Disclaimer- I don't own any of the characters or content in this story Bethdesa, The Doctor Who franchise, J.R.R. Tolkien, and J.K. Rowling do. **

**A/N- This isn't a cross over with any of the following's** {**The Doctor Who franchise, J.R.R. Tolkien, and J.K. Rowling } works there are just some allusions to their works in here.**

**-The first few chapters are being narrated by a dog. Sorry if it causes any confusion while reading. Carry on.**

My eye lids twitched open and my body reflexively stretched as I yawned. I stood shakily and stretched my back, slowly I began to move. Picking up pace I trotted through our nest my family was mostly asleep. Then I saw movement, Bryta's head lifted up and her ears twitched in acknowledgment. I wagged my tail in response, she gave her ears a slight wiggle and went back to sleep. Ollu lay in front of me I stepped over him carefully and his legs twitched in a dream chase. His brother Talell lay off to the side of him. I looked forward again then walked over to the food bowls Jory and her pups had fallen asleep on the other side of them close to the hearth. I ate a few bites of food to settle my stomach until breakfast then I headed out the arched doorway to my side and into the corridor. The soft padding of my foot falls echoed off the arched ceiling as I wandered through the corridors. The walls were like snow almost blinding to my sleepy eyes in the candle light. I blinked a few times and kept padding along. Then I stopped and sniffed a few times, our nest smelled of oil, metal, and wood smoke, nothing new today. Sometimes my person had new friends over, well they always smelled new to me anyway. My sire told me of some of them, they were her old pups, ones who had left her nest and found new nests. It wasn't rare for two or three of her old pups to live with us at a time.

After a few minutes of wandering I noticed the half open door to Liesl's room and sauntered in, the she was the newest of my person's pups. Usually she could be found crying, but she had exhausted herself and would take hours more to wake. Her long honey colored fur hung over her face she lay splayed on the bed, her arm hanging limply over the side. Her sleep coverings were twisted around her barely covering her, but the small fire pit was radiating heat. Liesl's little body was still taking deep heaving breaths, shaking her to her core even in a state of relaxation. It was like she was preparing herself for the sobs to come when she became conscious. I never knew why she cried as much as she did. She wasn't physically hurt, but her smell changed after being here for a few days, from musk to more of a scent like skin and lavender oil. The change in scent wasn't rare but I hadn't smelled that scent on any of the other pups, I had only smelled it that strongly in the person hive called Riften at the community nest closest to the big doors. The golden haired female working behind the counter seemed content with the place. The other however, the mud haired female, was full of hatred for the musky smelling nest. She was like little Liesl, only Liesl was younger and hurt more than the mud haired female. Liesl would start sobbing hard as soon as her eyes opened I would cuddle her with Dess when she woke, she didn't need any extra hours of sobbing so I slid back into the hall from the narrow opening.

Next were the barred nests in the nursery with the three bundles. Nulue was sleeping soundly across the room, her dark hide the color of lavender blended into the dark room well. Her fur dark, like the soft rock that master made marks on sheets with, was facing me her head was tilted to the side as she slept on her belly. Nulue helped mother the smallest pups with Nirire. Nirire's hide was the color of snow like the walls. She had a soft downy fur on the top of her head, I could barely see it. Unlike most of the people in our nest Nirire didn't close her eyes when she slept because she didn't have eyes. She scared me when I was just a small pup but I found that she was just as good as any of the others who lived here. Nirire smelled the same as the bundles I wondered if they would look like her too. I could tell that they were very pale. Deciding that I had wandered around enough in the nursery I padded back into the corridor. Scanning my surroundings I considered the situation, I had visited two rooms and no one was awake or ready to cuddle. The room across the hall held the older females, called Kjolbi, Hesir, and Liria, maybe they would want to cuddle me. I scratched at their door its dark green hue contrasted with the snow like walls and blended into the darkness. I could see inside through the horizontal bars in the door. There was no movement inside but maybe one of them would just be waking up. The door opened quietly under my paw.

I padded slowly through the door way, the first bed had Kjolbi in it. Kjolbi easily could have been louder in sleep than when she was awake; she was hurt inside I could feel it. It was strange not seeing her at the big fire pit with her water-metal and hammer. Kjolbi's pale hide shown in the dark room and her fur paler still covered her face; the girl was like a great horse her wide shoulders were nearly as wide as the bed, and her toes hung over the edge. Hesir lay in the next small bed. Hesir could be found anywhere the leather coated sheets were and there were piles of them by her bed. Hesir's arms were slightly stretched above her head as she slept, her strait nose standing up prominently and her cheek bones pressing at her skin like they were going to break through. Her hair, slightly darker than Kjolbi's and more cedar colored, looked like blood splayed on the pillow tonight. Hesir was smaller than her nest-sister and less well-muscled. Her bony frame barely covered half the bed width-wise. On the other hand length-wise her toes barely touched the edge of the bed. Liria was soundly asleep in her nest at the other side of the room. She was easily the youngest in that room, she stuck close to Hesir like a pup. She was curled up like a baby on her side; her medium colored fur was out of her face except for a few locks that slid out of place as the slight point of her ear poked through. Her small nose flared softly as she breathed. Her breath pushed her hair softly then pulled it back as she breathed in. Even in sleep her red lips stayed in their ever-present smile. I started for the door now seeing that no one in here would cuddle me. I scratched the metal door open further and entered the corridor once more.

The next nest room was filled with the eldest male pups. Odvan nested closest to the door. His dark fur was disheveled; the slight points of his ears sticking out through the hair as he deeply stared at one of those leather-bound things full of sheets. His shoulder-blades stuck out underneath his sleeping-shirt. His hide was very pale even in this darkness. If I hadn't known him my entire life I would think he was sickly or worse. Most of the time I couldn't even hear him breathe, Odvan was good at being quiet so quiet that if it weren't for my sense of smell I wouldn't know he was there. He was busy and shook his head when I entered. The one called Siricus was asleep in the next nest. Siricus's long dark fur, darker than night itself, covered half of his face he was curled into a ball like a small pup would when they are first born. His hide was the color of deer pelts when they were stretched on the tanning rack. He was larger than Odvan but smaller than Kjolbi. I sniffed at his side then went on to see the next person. I slipped past the end of his bed. Mathus's small frame was hunched over his desk grinding small plants into a paste his cedar colored hair falling across his face obscuring his features. He had a square chin, wide cheek bones, and a small straight nose. He didn't even notice me as I passed by him. I kept walking he wouldn't want to cuddle right now either. Then I saw Averoor at the practice dummy hacking and slashing, his straw-like hair flying around him. Even for him being the loudest of the four it was strange for him to be awake at this hour. I didn't close the distance between the two of us; I didn't feel like having a dagger embedded in me even if it was an accident. I turned and walked out no one here was in the mood for cuddling. The next room had my favorite person in it. She wouldn't care if I crawled into her bed. I scratched at the door softly and let myself in.

I stopped and laid my head on the edge of the bed. She was different from the others except from Nirire and some of the other pups my person brought home inside the room. She couldn't see. I felt her hand find the spot right behind my ear that was my spot. I wagged my tail and whimpered, oh this was bliss. She crooned softly to me in response. My person brought them back from a ruin in the mountains when they were just bundles. My person did that with a lot of things. We had a few other people in our nest that my person brought back years before me. My sire told me about them. I liked them too. My person mothered them. The one that was scratching me was called Dess by her. I crawled up into Dess's lap so that she could pet me more. I liked cuddling my person's pups they didn't have fur, other than the fur on top of them, so they wore special nesting materials but different than the ones that they nested in. The material that they nested in was usually much warmer and softer than this.

Dess had light skin like the soft, cold, water outside. She was nearly furless except for the soft, thin, down on her head. Her nose was pushed back into her skull, but she had a keen sense of smell like me. Her ears were long and pointed like my person's ears. But what set her apart was her stature she hunched, and her eyes or really where her eyes should have been. Pale pink skin had grown over that area. She wasn't gaunt like most others of her kind, the ones who fought with us; she was more filled out like my person. Another thing that made her different was that she could not make the complex noises that my person and others like her made either but she could talk in old ancient noises passed by generations of her kind. Dess was sweet she liked cuddling more than even I did. I remember when my person brought her into our home. I was just barely larger than a pup. She was so small and cold; she smelled of sickness. The other bundles that came with her were in much better shape. Instead of giving up and letting her die my person sat by the fire warming her and dripping milk into her mouth for weeks. The other people thought that Dess was going to die, and to be truthful she probably would have. But my person believed in Dess and so do I.

Her breathing became shallow as she relaxed back into her resting state. I would keep my sweet girl safe and she knew it. I closed my eyes slowly in a slow blink letting my head sink onto her bed. I fell asleep slowly there were a few hours until dawn left and I could still rest here until then. My eyes blinked open again. Light spilled through the horizontally barred windows making my eyes burn from the sudden change.

Now it was dawn which meant that my person would be up soon we were about to go to the big human hive for food, nest materials, and person coverings. I slinked off the bed careful not to disturb my girl any more. Then I made my way to my person's room and curled up before her pit of fire to keep warm. My person would be up soon. My eyes sunk closed for a few minutes she would wake me with food and a pat on the head like usual.

I blinked my eyes as I woke to that juicy, tantalizing, smell that indicated that meat was definitely near me. My tail started thumping automatically once I started towards my bowl. _My person is so good to me. _I buried my muzzle in the bowl and mowed down. Once I had cleaned my bowl well I pranced into the people's eating room. I laid my head on Mathus's lap he always gave me extra nibbles from the table. Liesl sat next to Kolbi across the table she was known to scrape her plate clean in the dog nest. I liked her even though I couldn't figure out why she would give up food just like I couldn't understand her sobbing. She was quiet now though, her little body still trembled though. My person was engaged in a conversation with her pup Averoor.

He was excited " Ma' can we please go out hunting in the mountains with, Kjolbi and Hesir? Please! Please! We'll stay back and everything. We promise!" My person chuckled her voice was music. I could see her long fur hanging down it was close enough to the floor that if I laid down under it it would brush my back . Her fur was different than any I had ever seen, it was like someone had mixed the colors of the sun, mud and cedar together and painted it into her hair, but it was always that color.

"Of course, but wait until I get home please." He was less excited now, "Awe," He sighed softly," thanks ma'." I watched Kjolbi shift in her seat slowly then prod Hesir with her foot. Hesir finally spoke up.

"Yes, you can come with us, when mom gets back from the supply run. Tomorrow." Kjolbi tensed that wasn't what she wanted but she relaxed after a second. Odvan sighed from across the table and put his softly clenched hands on his lap.

They finished eating soon afterward. Liesl was the first out of the room, almost running back to her room. I would follow but I had to go with my person today. I got up and followed my person back to her nest. She walked back to the back door of her nest-room and through it. She stripped out of her sleeping materials. She laid in the warm water back there scrubbing herself with a soft, hole filled rock. She wet her fur and worked through it with her lavender oil shining it and cleaning it. She scrubbed down to her scalp and then dunked her head in the water. She rubbed the lavender oil into her hide letting the suds soak into her hide to soften it and make it smell nice. She scrubbed under her arm-pits some more and then rinsed off. She got up out of her bath and dried off quickly with a cloth. She wrapped the cloth around her fur and worked it down wringing it out. She slipped her under clothes on first then her heavy armor, it was the color of the sky but it was hard and cold. She walked over to her night stand and grabbed her pins then started twisting her hair up and out of the way. At last she pinned her hair back into a large bun. Then she walked out of her nest-room into the corridor.

I followed her out she would be heading to the armory now. We walked for a few minutes our footfalls echoing back, hers louder than mine. When we got to the armory she took her two axes off the wall. They were sleek steel axes, with an enchantment on them. I hadn't quiet figured out what the enchantment was yet, even after following her for all this time. I'd seen her use them before, sometimes when she hit something it caught fire, but other times it would shock them, or send bone chilling cold through them. She slid her twin axes into the loops on either side of her waist then turned back to walk out into the corridor. I stepped out of her way and fell into step behind her as we started for the door out of our nest. We walked like we were going to the place where the people gathered to eat then we passed the large platform they placed food on. We neared the door, it had bars like the others but it was solid. My person pushed it slowly to avoid the loud creaking it made and we slipped out onto the front ledge. Cobble stones beneath us gave us some purchase as we picked our way down to the main path. My person whistled for Ruinë, her horse. He was smaller and more nimble than the animals that were sold near the large people hives. Ruinë was old and wise. He knew when to fight and when to run; I couldn't keep up with him if I tried. But now he was walking down the mountain slowly with us picking his way through paths and avoiding weak spots in the ledges. Sometimes a ledge would crumble and send whatever was on it all the way down to the bottom of the mountain. Chances were if we were to be on one of those ledges no one would find us until we had turned to dust and returned into Nirn.


End file.
